London: Indian writer Hema S Raman was today declared as the Asian Regional winner of the Commonwealth Short Story Competition 2007. Hema, who writes flash fiction and short stories, will receive 500 pounds as prize money.

Meanwhile, Zambia's Ellen Banda-Aaku was the overall winner of the competition. Ellen will get 2,000 pounds for her story 'Sozi's Box', which was selected as the best story from the Africa region of the Commonwealth as well as the winning piece of fiction from more than 2000 entries. 'Sozi's Box' examines the themes of loss and disability as seen through the eyes of a child at her brother's funeral.

The annual competition, constituted by the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association, meant to increase understanding between the appreciation of different Commonwealth cultures, to showcase the rich diversity of the Commonwealth and to support rising literary talents. Besides Hema, the three other regional winners were -- Catherine Palmer from New Zealand (Australia and the Pacific), Sarah Totton from Canada (Canada and the Caribbean) and Emily Pedder from the UK (Europe).

From the Asian region, highly commended works included 'Underneath the Sky' by Rayika Choudri, 'A good Night's Work' by Ashwini Gowariker, 'A Win-Win Game' by Aniruddha Sen and 'Arranged Marriage' by Manasi Subramaniam.

Source : PTI